Doing the numbers

Geoff Sewell.

Geoff Sewell is used to crunching numbers. The London-based Kiwi singer who struck success with "popera" band Amici Forever before marching to his own beat is a qualified chartered accountant who manages both his own career and those of others, albeit with lots of help from his wife and business partner, Simone Lanham.

Thus he has seen the figures: Amici, the group he founded, has sold more than two and a-half million albums worldwide; 2003 debut album The Opera Band held top spot in New Zealand for four weeks, went to No 2 in Australia and reached No 2 on the United States Billboard classical crossover chart for 2004; while 2005 follow-up Defined also reached No 1 here and No 3 across the ditch.

Here's a couple more on which to reflect: 34-20. That's the scoreline of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup final in which New Zealand beat host nation Australia. Sewell was there that November day, both in voice and spirit. Having flown 30 hours to sing the New Zealand national anthem, he donned a Kiwi jersey for the occasion, then "danced like a child" after the full-time whistle.

Sewell makes a point of enjoying himself. Back in New Zealand for a national tour that features a half-dozen other singers, including compatriot Elizabeth Marvelly, he has made sure there is time enough at the end to head to the beach with his two young daughters.

"That's the great thing about coming home - most of the places we're going to be touring we've got family, cousins and stuff, so we're going to be taking the kids around as well. They can meet the rellies, which will be great," Sewell explains via cellphone as he heads off to rehearsal in Auckland this week.

The tour, which opened in Hamilton on Wednesday night and includes a show at Dunedin's Regent Theatre on Monday, will feature a range of material, from Verdi to Dean Martin, Puccini to pop.

"We are touring with a 10-piece band as well. We've got strings and a rhythm section. It's not just six singers on stage; there is dancing, a bit of tap, a bit of Phantom of the Opera, a bit of musical theatre . . . there is something for everyone."

Among the material will be a track dedicated to his eldest daughter. Sienna's Song, written by Simone, features on Sewell's debut solo album, Believe, the title of which refers to his confidence in a positive outcome for his daughter, who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at the age of 2.

In January 2006, Sewell decided to leave the band he'd founded. Amici's hectic promotional and performance schedule was too much.

"Amici was such an amazing ride, but you had so many people pulling you in so many directions. For instance, you'd have to drop everything and fly to America to do some TV show, or we'd have holidays booked then they'd be cancelled because we had to be on something else.

"As soon as we heard about Sienna, it was really easy. We'd had four and a-half years of this; we created the whole thing.

"The family is No 1 priority. As soon as those little things are born, it's like, 'what the hell was I doing beforehand?'. When one of your children gets sick, that's when you regroup . . you do think, 'what is really important?'."

Sienna, now 5, attends school in Hampstead, London.

"She goes to school for socialisation," Sewell explains.

"She knows how to read and write. The main thing that challenges her is connecting with people her own age."

A charity, the Sewell Foundation, has been established to help families affected by autism. Through sales of Amici albums, Sewell raised more than $30,000 for Autism NZ in 2006 and more than $A50,000 for Autism Australia. Sewell has also raised more than 60,000 for the National Society of Epilepsy in the UK.

"When we left Amici three years ago, we had so many families emailing and ringing up. Now our daughter is doing extremely well . . . When we went through that three years ago and got the diagnosis, it was all doom and gloom from the medical professionals. So we are on a big education campaign and attempting to offer a beacon of hope for families."